On Thursday
, a massacre of 21 people
near the capital Juba exalted the humanitarian hell that
South Sudan
lives , where Pope Francis arrived on Friday afternoon.
In his first speech, Francis urged the authorities to
stop accusing each
other and
fulfill their promises,
advancing the peace and reconciliation agreement in an African country that
"cries over the violence, poverty and natural disasters
that torment it." .
"I come as a pilgrim of reconciliation, with the dream of accompanying you on your path of peace, a tortuous path but one that
can no longer be postponed
," the Argentine Pope told the country's authorities in the garden of the presidential palace, after having met with President Salva Kiir Mayardit and the opposition leader and vice president of the national unity government, Rick Machar.
Francis with the President of South Sudan, Salva Kiir.
Photo: EFE
A historical fact
For the first time in the history of Christianity
, the leaders of three denominations
-Catholic, Anglican and Presbyterian- disembarked together at three in the afternoon at the local airport for a visit by the 86-year-old Argentine pontiff that
will last until Sunday,
when will return to Rome.
He is accompanied
by the Archbishop of Canterbury
, Justin Welby, and the moderator of the Church of Scotland, Iain Greenshields, engaged in a joint effort to resume the process of pacification and institutional normalization
suspended by the continuous warfare
between the
sixty ethnic groups
that they suffocate this country with their armed confrontations.
The Archbishop of Canterbury, Justin Welby, and the Moderator of the Church of Scotland, Iain Greenshields, with the Pope in Juba.
Photo: Reuters
“We have embarked on this ecumenical pilgrimage of peace after having heard the cry of a whole people who, with great dignity, weep for the violence they suffer, for the constant insecurity, for the poverty that strikes them and for the natural disasters that they torment him,” added the Pope.
Francis lamented that "these are years of wars and conflicts that seem to have no end, while the reconciliation processes and the promises of peace remain unfulfilled."
Jorge Bergoglio explained that "the children of South Sudan
need parents but not bosses
, determined steps towards development and not continuous falls."
“The time has come to say enough is enough, without conditions and without buts.
Enough of the spilled blood, enough of the conflicts, enough of the aggressions and reciprocal accusations about who was guilty, enough of leaving the people thirsty for peace.
Enough destruction, it's time to build.
We must leave behind the time of war and foster a time of peace, based on democratic development”, after
the call for elections
has been postponed on several occasions .
“It is time to
move from words to deeds
.
The peace and reconciliation process requires a new impetus”.
And he concluded: "Many things are needed here but certainly there is no need for more instruments of death."
the youngest country
South Sudan
gained independence
from Sudan in 2011, ravaged by internal violence that in four decades caused more than
two million deaths
.
Two years later, a civil war broke out in the so-called "youngest in Africa", which caused 400,000 more deaths.
With rich natural resources, South Sudan is
one of the poorest and most devastated countries in the world
, whose population survives largely thanks to international aid.
On April 11, 2019,
Francis received
the two opposing leaders in the Vatican and in a gesture that caused astonishment
, he knelt down and symbolically kissed their feet,
imploring them for peace and unity in their martyred nation.
Francis received the two opposing leaders in the Vatican and kissed their feet.
Photo: Ansa
A peace negotiation is carried out with the mediation of the Community of Sant'Egidio,
a powerful Catholic movement
neighboring the pontiff, which has managed to sign independence and peace agreements that put an end to civil wars in several Third World nations.
A major objective of the visit of the Pope and the two Protestant leaders who accompany him is to get the "Ecumenical Path for Peace" resumed, suspended due to violence in this nation of 12 million inhabitants, with
60% Christians.
At this level it is important that the mediation of the Community of Sant'Egidio achieves a decisive result thanks to the visit of the pontiff and other Christian leaders.
Women sing to welcome the Pope in Juba.
Photo: AP
A minor but shocking misstep was made on Thursday by the Information Minister, who said that
"South Sudan will never tolerate homosexuality
or same-sex marriage," which is punishable by up to 10 years in prison.
"In this country, homosexual practices
are a crime
," warned the minister.
Everyone recalled that the Pope reiterated several times that for the Catholic Church, homosexual behavior "is a sin,
not a crime
."
The minister, in an obvious effort to achieve his stellar moment, clarified that he did not believe that the Pope would come to South Sudan to raise such an issue, but just in case he said that, if he did, the answer was a resounding "no."
Honor guard receives Pope Francis at the Juba airport.
Photo: AP
The abundance of natural resources, especially oil, which constitutes 98% of the economic income to South Sudan, also determines a corruption that, according to some sources, puts the country in the first place in Africa due to this major plague.
The Pope
will not move from the capital Juba
.
This Saturday, he will have a meeting with Catholic religious, consecrated women and seminarians in the Cathedral of Santa Teresa.
He will also meet privately with the Jesuit priests present in South Sudan.
He will also have a meeting with delegations of internally displaced persons in the Hall of Freedom.
She will then lead an Ecumenical Prayer at the mausoleum dedicated to independence leader John Garang.
The pope leaves the Juba airport among a crowd that came to see him.
Photo: AP
On Sunday, he will return to the John Garang mausoleum to officiate the Holy Mass.
Later, he will participate in
a farewell ceremony
in his honor at the Juba airport and will fly back to Rome by special plane.
It will arrive at Fiumicino airport at 5:30 p.m. local time, four hours less in Argentina.
Vatican correspondent
ap
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